onset of daylight
by akemi yuuko
Summary: matthewxleila/matthewxninian:: she overwhelmed him with this feeling of forgetting. -set after chapter 27-


-hello, Fire Emblem fanfiction! I am akemi. I like weird pairings. MatthewxNinian is one of them. I guess you could say that this is a bit Matthew-centric, but it does focus a little on MatthewxLeila, and hints at MatthewxNinain. Please enjoy my attempt at writing them. :)

DISCLAIMER: no.

-

It was funny- in a perverse, satirical way- how she changed everything with a shy bow of her head. She had an odd way of charming all she met with her fluid movements, her soft speech, and her gentle eyes- she was strange in a manner that helped him forget what he'd lost, and helped him look forward to the future.

-

It was a bright, cheery day, despite the bloodstained ground and heaps of gore that littered the field.

Yes- the world seemed fine with the fact that a hundred men had died that day, and that bothered Matthew. He always felt as if the sun shone at moments like this just to spite him, just to ruin the solemn mood of everything. He pursed his lips and began to clean his knife, as Eliwood, Hector, and Lyn rushed into the Shrine of Seals.

He could see Marcus galloping off the nearby village, carefully maneuvering around the bodies, to check on the local citizenry, and see if any were harmed. Kent trailed a few feet behind him, planning to buy new weapons at the armory. Matthew glanced down at his knife- now worn from constant use, and sighed.

Serra was looming over and injured Sain, and chatting poor Erk's ear off about how mean she thought Lord Hector was, and all the rude things he'd said to her. The mage tried several times to leave, but she barked at him to return to her side or, she'd hit him with her 'holy staff of Saint Elimine.' Sain sat, ignoring the two, and gaped up at Fiora, who, out of friendly concern, had ended up holding his hand. Matthew felt sorry for her- every few minutes, the injured soldier would spew something pathetic about her beauty, and she was beginning look as if she regretted being concerned about him.

The rest of the company hung around the walls of the shrine, sitting on the soft grass, nursing wounds and murmuring softly of the battle won. Finished polishing his knife, Matthew strayed a few feet away to a mangled corpse of a man, burnt beyond recognition by Pent's magic. He closed his eyes, and walked away, unable to bear looking at it any longer.

This mission…this mission was beginning to take its toll.

He tried so hard to keep up this cheerful façade, but with every day that passed, he only hurt more and more. He walked, not paying attention to where he was going, his face turned downward, avoiding the brightness of the sun.

Matthew was not the kind of man that relished the killing of others, no matter how evil. Not one murderous thought had entered his mind since Jaffar- the Angel of Death, who'd stolen his darling Leila-, had joined the party. He watched him from afar, and wondered how he lived with himself, he avoided his gaze, but not once had he considered revenge.

It just wasn't in his nature, he supposed.

And now, as he bent over blood stained flowers, stroking the dripping petals, he realized it truly wasn't. He considered running away, and abandoning the mission- they didn't _really_ need him. All he did was open locked doors and steal treasure- they had Legault for that.

Oh, how horrified Leila would be at the mutinous thoughts that flew threw his head!

A gust of wind blew across the field, and tickled his cheeks, teasing him for not being able to forget.

He'd waited far too long- what future happiness had died the day the Leila did? What dreams, what wonderful things had faded away with her life? He'd waited far too long, because he'd been scared, but what of? Refusal? Commitment?

He didn't know.

He sat slowly on the ground, and gazed out at the world, spread out in front of him. He could feel something- like an epiphany, some deep realization forming in his soul that he couldn't yet grasp. And just as he began to understand what he was feeling, he felt a hand on his shoulder, and it faded away.

Shrugging the hand off his shoulder, he turned sharply to see whose it was.

Ninian recoiled when she met his hostile gaze, and withdrew her hand.

"I…I'm sorry! D-Did I interrupt something….? I-I'm so sorry, Lord Matthew, I beg your pardon..." She stuttered, her eyes flickering about nervously.

He realized how furious he must look, and smiled. "No, no, it's quite all right, Lady Ninian- I was only…thinking."

This did not seem to calm her, for she continued to play fretfully with her hands, and stutter apologies. Finally, unable to tolerate her frantic behavior for any longer, he got up, and offered her his arm.

"You look drained, Lady Ninian. Have you been sleeping well?" he asked, trying to initiate conversation as they walked back to the rest of the group. Matthew suddenly realized how far he had wandered, and wondered how someone as frail-looking as the girl leaning on him for support could bear walking such a distance among so many carcasses.

"…Not lately." She replied quietly. "B-But I'm fine!' she quickly added, as Matthew raised his eyebrows in concern.

They continued in silence for a few moments.

"What…what about you, Lord Matthew?"

"Hm?" he asked, glancing down at her.

"Are… you all right? I…" she bit her lip, and began to turn pink.

"Oh! Were you worried about me, Lady Ninian?" Matthew laughed, but was touched by her concern.

She stopped, and clutched his arm a bit harder. "I…" She seemed embarrassed.

"No need to be so shy." He told her gently. He found Ninian compelling- she was elegant in an otherworldly way, soft and delicate like no flower in Elibe. And when he talked to her, everything else seemed to disappear.

However, this feeling of forgetting had often scared him, causing him to keep away from Ninian at all costs, while he wallowed in his misery.

"…I _am_ worried about you, Lord Matthew." She said, looking up at him cautiously. "You haven't seemed very well, lately…"

"Ah. I'm fine, really, Lady Ninian." He lied, urging them forward. She stopped him, a determined look suddenly appearing in her eyes.

"...I know you don't like me, Lord Matthew, but-"

"What?! Lady Ninian- it's not that I don't…enjoy your company-"

"Please don't patronize me, Lord Matthew!" She exclaimed, "I know you do not like me, but I would like you to know, that…that you can trust me. You can tell me whatever it is that has been plaguing you."

"I…" he was at a loss for words. "Lady Ninian."

Looking exhausted and worn after her outburst, Ninian leaned against him helplessly. "I do not want you to feel as if you are alone, Lord Matthew…" She then straightened herself, bowed her head at him bashfully, and took his arm again.

As they continued their walk back, Matthew began to understand why he'd stayed away from Ninian for so long- this girl, whoever she really was, wherever she was from, whatever secrets she was hiding, embodied hope. He didn't know what it was about her, but she gave him the same feeling that Leila had, and that had frightened him to no end. He was scared to go on with is life, scared to stop thinking about the woman that had meant so much to him.

But Leila would have hated him for being scared to move on, and the fierce wind seemed to confirm that.

They arrived back at the Shrine, the company still waiting for the three lords to emerge.

"Thank you." Ninian said quietly, unlinking their arms. Matthew pulled her into a brief hug.

"No, Lady Ninian- thank you. I'm glad to know of your concern for me. I will have to make sure I don't worry you anymore!" He- somewhat reluctantly- released her from his hug, and saw her face had turned bright red.

"L-Lord M-Matthew…" She stammered, clasping her hands together tightly.

"Just 'Matthew' is fine," he said, grinning at her broadly. "We should…talk more, later. You are a very delightful person to be around, Lady Ninian."

"Of…of course. Matthew." She beamed back at him, and curtsied before walking away.

Nils ran up to her, an anxious look on his face. He soon relaxed, and glanced incredulously back at Matthew a few moments later. He dragged her off to the side, a serious look on his face- Matthew wondered why, but didn't really care, for Ninian had turned to smile at him.

In that smile, Matthew saw happiness- happiness that he wanted her to have forever.

He saw the soul of a girl who made him feel something special.

He saw hope.

-

I hope I didn't utterly destroy Matthew's character…comments are loved.


End file.
